Time publishes correction to medical billing article

AHA News NowFeb 26, 2013

At the request of AHA, Time magazine today published a correction to the online version of its Feb. 20 article on medical bills. The piece asserted that uncompensated care data are based on prices when in fact these data are reported on the basis of costs not charges. "The original version of this article stated that the total annual amount of charity care provided by U.S. hospitals cost them less than half of 1% of their annual revenue," the correction states. "In fact, the uncompensated care hospitals provide, either through charity programs or because of patients failing to pay their debts, amounts to approximately 5% of their total revenue for 2010."